


savin' my love for you

by narryster



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-11
Updated: 2015-02-11
Packaged: 2018-03-11 22:33:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3335216
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/narryster/pseuds/narryster
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“You should put on your watch, you know?”</p>
<p>Even in the dark with the only light coming from the moon and the lamps on the campus, Harry can see Niall cocking his head to the side, probably wondering what is going through Harry’s mind now. “Why?”</p>
<p>Harry is still not exactly sure if he’s right – if he can be sure about the thing with Niall – but he’s hit by a warm and content feeling when he thinks about it. “Just do it.”</p>
<p> *</p>
<p>Or; Harry meets his soulmate on Valentine's Day.</p>
            </blockquote>





	savin' my love for you

**Author's Note:**

  * For [greeknarryshipper](https://archiveofourown.org/users/greeknarryshipper/gifts).



> You said I could change the prompt a bit so I did and I hope you still like it!
> 
> Title from Best Mistake by Ariana Grande ft. Big Sean. The song doesn't fit to the story but it's still great haha
> 
> Thanks to my beta [Jean](http://arie-172.tumblr.com/), she's amazing!

Harry gets his watch on his eighteenth birthday.   
  
Which is normal, seeing as that happens to everybody the day they turn that age. Really _everybody_ gets their watch  _that_  day.  
  
So the emphasis is on the word  _'watch'_  – the thing Harry’s been waiting for his entire life, the thing he’s been excited for since it’s been explained to him.  
  
Which is a long time considering he’s eighteen now.  _Finally._  
  
Harry knows that it has arrived today. It arrives for everybody on the exact day of their eighteenth birthday (hidden in a little box), because it’s a thing arranged by government, after all. He still hasn’t seen it yet, even though it’s already afternoon and it’s been quite a few hours of being eighteen already, but the thing is, he only got home from school now. And,  _he knows_  his entire family wants to gather together to see him putting his watch on, and stuff like that usually needs some time.   
  
But still. Harry couldn’t stop thinking about it since the moment he woke up.

So it’s been a hell of a day.  
  
But now Harry’s home and he’s just waiting in the living room for his parents to get it, his present,  _his watch_ , while he couldn’t care less about anything else they got for him (for now, at least). Gemma is already sitting there with him and Harry knows she’s silently laughing at his excitement, and at the fact that he can’t sit still just because he’s tired of waiting any longer. Harry might have only been fourteen the day Gemma got her watch, but he can still remember how she’d been acting the same way, buzzing with excitement on her seat and practically yanking her present out of their mother’s hands. She might think she had been better at hiding her excitement, but Harry had seen through her act.  
  
Harry almost jumps up the moment he sees his parents entering the room but he holds himself back, sitting on the sofa but ready to get up any second. He notices his parents shaking their heads at him, silently laughing when they see how fidgety he is. It’s like everyone is amused by his excitement today – as if they all enjoy torturing him like that.  
  
Can’t they just hand the damn thing to him already?  
  
“I just thought…how about we eat the cake first?” Harry’s father suggests, laughing after, which makes it obvious that he’s only teasing Harry.  
  
And Harry groans because he doesn’t think he can go through this any longer, wishing his family would be a bit nicer to him in the situation he’s in. After all, they’ve  _all_ been in the same situation before.

“I would like that!” Gemma agrees, definitely taking the piss out of her brother because that’s what she always does whenever she gets the chance.

“C’mon…” Harry groans, giving his mother a pleading look, seeing as she’s the one who has the present in her hand and would be the first to start pitying Harry – most likely giving in more quickly than the others would.

“Of course, Harry. Sorry; don’t mind them.” His mother even apologizes, smiling brightly at her son as she hands him the box over and Harry almost rolls his eyes at the fact that it’s wrapped with a bow on top because he  _knows_  what’s in it, after all.  
  
“Seriously?” Harry laughs to himself quickly, before he finally starts unpacking.  
  
He hopes he doesn’t seem too eager as he unwraps the present, but then again, it’s  _not_  like he cares that much. He’s so  _close_ to putting his watch on after so many years of waiting that it’s like he blanks out the people watching him.

The box underneath the paper is grey, simply silver-grey without any indication of what could be in it. But Harry knows, of course.

_Everybody_ knows the item that’s in such a kind of box.  
  
Harry takes a last deep breath before he opens the lid, looking into the box to see a familiar black watch – one he’s seen an awful lot of times before. It’s a simple one; one that’s common for people to wear, and it’s the same as the one Harry’s sister still has on her wrist for the fourth year already. He usually doesn’t see another version of such a watch, but he’s seen some on TV for example – watches with different colors or special prints on them, instead of the simple black color. But it costs money so it’s not like Harry expected such a special watch from his parents on his birthday. He  _didn’t even want_  one, seeing as he couldn’t care less about however the watch looks. What’s important to him is the fact that the thing works.    
  
Eventually, Harry gets it out of the box and the first thing he notices is that it’s not at all as heavy as he expected it to be.

In fact, it’s extremely light.

It doesn’t look like the watches that tell you what time it is – don’t get that wrong – because the watch  _he_  has in his hand is too thin for that. It’s unknown to him out of which material it’s made, and he wonders how it’s possible that something looking like steel can somehow feel so soft as if it’s some kind of fabric. Modern technique is not something he’s ever been interested in, not even in how those watches work because, again, all Harry ever cared about is  _that they work ._ So, while he’s still ignoring his family watching him, he puts on the watch, immediately noticing how it fits on his wrist like a second skin, even with the extremely thin display integrated. It’s almost like some ribbon.   
  
And it’s like it is _made_ for him. Like it was made to be on his wrist because Harry doesn’t have to shift it at all for it to feel secure on his arm now that it’s closed. It has to be solid on his wrist, has to be resistant to a lot of damage because he’s most likely wearing that thing for a few years.  
  
And he’s heard of people wearing it for a very long time.  
  
Harry hopes that  _won’t_ be his case.  
  
“Does it say anything yet?” He hears Gemma ask and it seems like she’s actually excited about him getting his watch after all.  
  
But then again, she probably only wants to compete against him.  
  
Harry is about to look at her and tell her  _no, it hasn’t done anything yet_  and he has no idea why this damn thing is taking so long to start doing something, when he feels a soft vibrate on his wrist and he sees the display light up.  It’s completely white at first and Harry thinks how he can’t remember it taking so long for his sister but then the black numbers and letters show up and once again he holds his breath, trying to read them.  
  
 **3 years.  
1 week.  
6 days.  
6 hours.  
13 minutes.**  
  
“What does it say?” Harry hears Gemma exclaim excitedly, and he would have answered if it wasn’t for the fact that he can’t stop staring at the numbers and letters.  
  
Three years.  
  
 _Three. Years.  
_  
Three  _damn_  years!   
  
Three years _isn’t_  much _._ Well, not that much when youcompare it to what others get once they put their watch on.  _Hell,_  even Gemma still has four years on hers even though hers has started a bit more than three years ago.  
  
“Can I see?” His mum asks and he holds his wrist towards her without saying anything. Harry doesn’t think he can comprehend the newfound information yet.  
  
“Three years, Harry! That’s amazing!” His mother exclaims and Harry gets up with a grin on his face to let her hug him.  
  
Three years isn’t much. He  _can wait_  three years.  
  
“That’s a joke, right? I can’t believe this.” Gemma rambles, obvious annoyance in her voice and Harry kind of actually feels sorry for her, because he imagines looking at his watch and seeing over seven years there.  
  
Harry feels his father hold his wrist to get a better look at the screen and he hears a laugh before his father asks, “You know which day that is?”  
  
Harry pulls his arm out of his father’s grip, taking a look at the countdown and trying to calculate which exact date in three years it’s gonna be. He actually has to let out a laugh as well because in a way, it’s kind of funny and exciting and maybe he can’t wait three years after all because he’s already getting too excited.  
  
Harry can’t believe he’s gonna meet his soulmate on Valentine’s Day.  
  
  
*  
  
  
The closer he gets to the date, the worse it becomes because it’s Harry’s 21st birthday now and all he can think about is  _damn_ Valentine’s Day. His obsession of taking a look at the countdown on his wrist becomes stronger each day and it’s  _driving him crazy_  because he still has to wait two weeks.   
  
Harry knows he’s got through three years already but those last few days will probably be the worst, he can feel it.  
  
All this time, it has still seemed too far away, so far in the future that Harry wasn’t able to grasp that  _it will actually happen_  one day. That he’ll meet his soulmate eventually.  
  
And now he will (in exactly thirteen days), and Harry’s going insane.  
  
He’s probably also annoying his mates with it, especially his roommate Liam who has to endure him most of the time. That is, when he’s not with his girlfriend (who is his soulmate, of course.)  
  
Harry knows the story of how they met. That it was at their university but before they both became students, both visiting the building to take a look at their possibly future uni. Liam says he was buzzing with excitement but stayed mostly calm, even though he knew that day he would meet his soulmate only a bit more than half a year after his eighteenth birthday.   
  
But Harry has his doubts that Liam stayed  _'mostly calm'_  when he thinks about how crazy Liam is about his Sophia.  
  
His other mate Zayn has been with his soulmate for around two years, but Harry doesn’t know much about how they met exactly. He only really knows they’ve met in university – seeing as Zayn likes to keep his stories simple.   
  
Perrie, his fiancée now, is the one who tells them more about it.  
  
Harry likes listening to  _Louis’_ story – one of the three mates he met at university – even though Louis often trails off criticizing the watches. Because, well, the thing is he and Eleanor, his soulmate, have been together in high school before they even turned eighteen, both not caring much about their watches, believing that they’ve found each other already so they were convinced they didn’t need them.  
  
And when Louis turned eighteen and he put his watch on, it didn’t even do anything at first. Only as he and Eleanor have been apart for more than 24 hours, his watch started counting down to the day they would meet again.   
  
It was clear of course, what that meant, but seeing as Eleanor wasn’t eighteen that time, Louis’ countdown started over and over again. It couldn’t find an end because it hasn’t been near Eleanor’s watch yet. So Louis’ watch was acting up most of the time, and only stopped working on her birthday when their watches connected.  
  
That’s the reason why Louis likes to say that the soulmate system isn’t flawless – that it has holes and bugs and it is unnecessary for people like Louis after all. He had been sure without it and  _didn’t_  actually need the confirmation.  
  
But Harry is different in that case. He  _needs_ the confirmation that he’s choosing the right person. That he’s not making a mistake by getting into a relationship too deep. Some people say,  _you just figure out who your soulmate is by yourself; you just know it somehow_. That you can actually be sure about it without a watch confirming it for you. But Harry still feels more secure with the countdown on his wrist than any other method.  
 **  
** _Which is stupid in a way – depending on the watch like that.  
_  
But there are millions of people who feel the same and it does have its advantages after all.  
  
So his 21st birthday, Harry spends with his mates and it’s nice and fun, but he can’t actually wait for the day and all the others after that to pass already.  
  
  
  
*  
  
  
  
Sometime during the day before Valentine’s Day, Harry’s countdown stops and his watch display gets blank.  
  
And although he’s pretty excited and wants it to be the next day already, he’s not too worried about it. He has been warned, after all.  
  
It’s known that the display stops around twenty-four hours before the countdown stops, is it to make the entire thing  _even more exciting,_  or to stop people from looking at the display for twenty-four hours straight,  _making them go insane_. Harry’s kind of glad that it does happen after all, because he knows he would have been one of those people, who would have stared at his countdown till the last seconds and he knows he would have gone crazy.  
  
It’s like the last calm day before the storm, so he’s relaxed for now and falls into a content sleep.  
  
He knows, this time tomorrow, the waiting is gonna be over.

  
*  
  
  
Harry wouldn’t have agreed to go to that Valentine’s Day party at his uni if it hadn’t been for the fact that he knows he’s gonna meet his soulmate that day. Which means  _very soon_ and he won’t be the … _what?_  Seventh wheel to their group considering he’s the only single one while there are three couples.  
  
For a brief moment, Harry has wondered if going to the party is the right decision, because  _what if_  he’s meant to stay at his room and meet his soulmate there somehow. But then again, you can’t change your countdown,  _your fate_ , and whatever you decide to do was meant to happen anyway, so Harry deciding to go to that party has always been part of the plan. Harry would be lying if he said he’s totally okay with standing by the lovely couples for a few hours while he’s alone. It’s not as bad as he probably makes it out to be, but it’s still boring and he wishes he could’ve stayed home.  
  
On top of that, Harry has no idea what time it is, seeing as Liam has snatched his phone away, saying, ‘ _stop doing that to yourself’_. So Harry has no idea how much longer till he meets his soulmate. He could literally hit himself for not putting  _an actual watch_  on.  
  
They’re all standing there together for a while with Harry feeling like it’s been an eternity, as he sips on his second beer that night. He doesn’t even like beer that much but he doesn’t know what else to do to keep himself occupied instead of desperately finding a clock somewhere. Harry doesn’t dare ask Liam to give some hint on the time because he knows it’s pointless and Louis would make fun of him if he hears it, which is not fair, seeing as Louis had it way easier.  
  
Sometime during his third beer, the drinking makes its consequences felt and Harry excuses himself to go to the loo, not waiting for his friends’ reaction. There’s a bit of a line at the  _damn_  men’s restroom, which is ridiculous, and Harry can’t help but let out an annoyed sigh. Everything is going  _extremely slow_  today and  _that’s_  what’s driving him crazy.

_Not a stupid countdown._

Harry eventually is on his way back to his friends after a while and he wonders if he should maybe ask somebody what time it is. It wouldn’t do any harm and the worst that could happen is pissing a happy couple off by interrupting their date.  
  
It seems like even more people have joined the party while Harry has been gone finishing his business because he has a hard time finding a way through the people without bumping into them. He already thinks he got through the worst because the mass of people becomes clearer and he should be near his group of friends when he has to avoid running into somebody and takes a step back, feeling his back bump into somebody else.  
  
Harry shuts his eyes close and tries to hold back a groan, because he has always been a bit clumsy and he should have known better than to walk through a crowd of people after drinking beer.  
  
He is ready to apologize, turning around as he opens his eyes, but he’s beat to it once he hears the person speak up.  
  
“Harry?”  
  
And Harry has to stop himself from stumbling while he’s turning around, wide eyes fixed on the person in front of him while he vaguely notices his mouth open and close again.  
  
 _"Haz?"_  
  
The all too familiar boy -  _or should he say man now_  - asks again and there’s no doubt anymore that it’s actually the person that he thinks it is. Harry can’t believe he’s still dying his hair blond after all those years, but his hair is shorter than Harry is used too, which makes the brunet roots visible. The big smile he’s giving Harry is still the same even though his teeth are completely straight now, and his eyes are the same blue that Harry has to blink a few times to comprehend that he just ran into him.  
  
“Niall.”  
  
Harry manages to breathe out and it’s not a question because he  _knows_  it’s him.  
  
“I can’t believe it’s you!” Niall exclaims over the loud music in the room and then he has already engulfed Harry into a hug, something Harry has felt too many times before. It’s familiar but then again different because Harry is a bit taller than him now and it’s just _; they’re older now_. They both look older, they’re  _different_ now.  
  
“Wha- …what are you doing here?” Harry finally asks when they let go of each other and it’s kind of a dumb question to ask, after they haven’t seen each other for so many years.  
  
“I managed to switch unis a little while ago. You’re a student here?” Niall asks taking a sip from his beer bottle.  
  
Harry nods, eyes still a bit widened because he still can’t believe that he’s talking to Niall.  _Niall,_  of all people.  
  
“Sick.” Niall lets out, still with a big grin on his face and it seems like he handles the encounter between them two way better than Harry does. “How have you been?”  
  
Harry doesn’t know how to answer that because  _well_ , there’s not much that he could talk about. Has he been good? What has he been even doing since he and Niall lost contact?  
  
“Good, I…I’ve been alright, yeah.” Harry nods to himself and Niall laughs at that. “What about you?”  
  
“Brilliant.” Niall copies him by nodding as well and Harry can’t help to smile a little bit.   
  
Harry doesn’t know what to say and it seems like Niall doesn’t either, which makes it a bit awkward. He remembers the times they couldn’t stop talking while being with each other and when they were so close they sometimes didn’t even have to say anything to understand each other.  
  
And it’s basically shoved into his face how much has changed between them. How far they’ve grown apart during all these years, and it’s a terrible feeling.  
  
“So…” Harry mumbles, pointing into the crowd somewhere to his left. “I have to go, uhm…my friends are waiting.”  
  
Niall smiles at him, making a gesture behind him with his beer bottle. “I’m here with a few friends. Which means people I only met a little while ago.”  
  
Harry returns a small smile, taking a step away from the boy. “Bye, uhm…it was nice seeing you, Niall.”  
  
“We should catch up sometime. Talk about what you’ve been doing, huh?”   
  
Harry only nods, giving a ‘thumbs up’ before he turns around and tries to find his way back to his group.  He’s a bit disoriented at first, still taken aback from the encounter with his -  _former?_  - friend and he’s kind of confused, doesn’t know what to think.  
  
Because meeting Niall, his childhood best friend for years, isn’t something he’s expected to happen, definitely not at a Valentine’s Day Party at his uni. He has kind of thought he would never hear from Niall again, after they’ve lost contact five years ago so he wasn’t prepared for this at all.  
  
Harry was taken off guard by looking into the familiar blue eyes again, totally surprised by the big smile he received, but then again it’s been a long while, so them meeting again was kind of an exciting, good thing.  
  
Harry just hasn’t managed to let that sink in since he was too busy staring at Niall.  
  
Niall has kind of changed but he does also seem like he’s the same Niall Harry remembers from years ago. He still has this kind and comfortable aura, which reminds Harry of home and silly jokes they shared. But Niall seems like such a man now, with the stubble in his face and his older features. It reminds Harry of what he’s missed experiencing while Niall was gone and he doesn’t know how to handle it.  
  
Harry has his brow deep furrowed when he finds his friends and once they catch his sight, they give him confused expressions, which turn into big grins. It makes Harry even more confused, to be honest. What’s with people giving him such happy smiles today?  
  
“And?” Liam asks him once he arrives.  
  
“What do you mean ‘and?” Harry wants to know.  
  
“What are you doing here? I expected you to be gone longer.” Louis laughs.  
  
 _Longer?_  For only going to the loo, Harry has already taken ‘longer’.  
  
“Huh? Did you think I’d be taking a shit?”  
  
They all laugh and Harry just stands there, still irritated.  
  
“Who’s your soulmate?” Sophia asks him with a lovely smile on her lips.  
  
“How am I supposed to know?” Harry grumbles, tone slightly harsh.  
  
Her smile immediately turns into a frown, which mirrors all of their expressions now.   
  
“We figured you’d met them already. We haven’t been wrong about the time right? You’ve told me multiple times it’s gonna be at 22:37.” Liam mumbles, confusion written on his face.  
  
“Yeah, because it’s right. Speaking of that,  _what time is it_?”  
  
Their expressions show shock now, apart from Louis who laughs out loud. Typically.  
  
“Mate, it’s almost eleven now.” Zayn tells him and he seems to be amused as well.  
  
“What?” Harry holds his breath in shock, looking at all of them to figure out if they are joking.  
  
“So you didn’t meet anyone?” Liam asks. “Are you sure it couldn’t have been an hour later or something?”  
  
“I didn’t…” Harry feels like he has to defend himself until he remembers what has happened on his way back and he shuts his mouth close.  
  
Wait…  
  
No.  
  
 _Nooooo.  
_  
It can’t be… _right?_  
  
No way.   
  
He only met an old mate – a person he used to be very close with – but that doesn’t mean what he thinks it means.  
  
Shouldn’t have something happened then?  _Anything_?  
  
He’s been told he would feel it – not necessarily in his heart or something – but his watch would let him feel _it._

  
And nothing happened.  
  
His watch is still blank.  
  
And Niall… _isn’t_  his soulmate… _right_?  
  
“Maybe it’s broken?” Perrie says after a moment. “I’ve never really heard of something like that to happen but if you didn’t meet anyone…” she suggests with a shrug.  
  
“Well, I met someone.” Harry admits and his friends’ faces light up as they hear that. “But I still think that damn thing is broken.” He adds, glaring at the watch on his wrist.  
  
“If you met your soulmate, it should vibrate. Did your watch vibrate?”  
  
“No.” Harry groans. “But maybe I missed it?”  
  
Which would mean, Niall, of all people, is actually his soulmate and he’s just left him…with an awkward smile and a ‘thumbs up’.

_Charming._

“Mate, I doubt you could miss that. The vibration was so annoying I immediately put that thing off.” Louis laughs.

“Who did you meet anyway?” Liam wants to know.  
  
“I…I ran into an old mate. Which I haven’t seen for five years. And it was kind of awkward so I ran off after a few minutes. I don’t believe it’s him.” Harry can’t imagine it actually being Niall.  
  
“Well, it seems like your watch is still blank which means your next meeting will be in the next 24 hours. So my suggestion is that you go find him and figure out what happened.” Liam tells him.  
  
“What but… What am I supposed to say? Shouldn’t he have noticed anything?”  
  
“Go figure it out.” Louis actually pushes him into the crowd and a bit bewildered, Harry sighs in defeat and tries to find his way back to where he came from a few minutes ago.  
  
 _It can’t be Niall._  Harry knows that. It’s not supposed to happen.  
  
Or so he always thought.  
  
Harry (too quickly) catches sight of the boy and for a second he stands still, taking a deep breath before he takes a step in his direction.  
  
“Niall!”  
  
He shouts but it’s probably barely audible in the room, due to the loud music.  
  
“Niall!”  
  
Harry yells again, making the boy turn around and it doesn’t take long for Niall to realize who he is.  
  
“Harry! You again! Did you forget anything?”  
  
Harry is standing in front of him now and he gets a bit nervous, not knowing how to start such a conversation.  
  
‘Hey, Niall, I think we’re soulmates!’  
  
 _No._  
  
‘I met you during the time I was supposed to meet my soulmate so guess what?!’  
  
 _Uhm._  
  
Niall raises an eyebrow at him, taking a sip from his bottle and due to his rolled up sleeves, making it possible for Harry to see that there is no watch. On that wrist, at least.  
  
So Harry eyes flash to Niall’s other arm and to his surprise and well,  _shock_ , there isn’t one either.  
  
 _What?_  
  
“Harry?”  
  
Harry’s head snaps up to Niall’s face again and he has troubles finding the right words to say.  
  
“Let’s uhm, catch up on things now. Can we talk somewhere? Alone?”  
  
There’s no hesitation in Niall’s smile, immediately agreeing to Harry’s random idea without questioning any of it. “Sure.”  
  
And Harry has to smile back, a bit taken off guard by the immediate answer. “Okay, uhm, we could go outside?” He asks, leaning a bit towards Niall to ensure that he hears him.  
  
Niall nods with a grin, emptying his beer bottle before he turns around to place it on the table his ‘friends’ are standing at. Harry supposes Niall tells them that he’s leaving, because he quickly gets back to Harry after he’s seen Niall saying only a few words to them.  
  
It makes Harry smile, a bit more relaxed and relieved, that Niall still trusts him so much to immediately agree to whatever he’s suggesting, because Niall has to know it’s freezing outside seeing as it’s February but still. Niall obviously still thinks it’s worth leaving the warm building to talk to Harry, reminding him of when they were younger.  
  
They get their jackets on their way outside without sharing another word as Harry opens the door for him and Niall, cold air hitting them both, which makes Harry shudder for a moment. Niall, of course, notices and laughs at him, looking like he’s way warmer in his winter jacket than Harry in his knee long coat. The cold wind is making a mess of Harry’s long brown hair and he wishes he had put it in a bun earlier.  
  
Harry would have _loved_  to see Niall’s reaction to that hair style.  
  
“So…” Niall starts, taking a few steps backwards and away from the campus, while waiting for Harry to come along. “Anything specific you wanted to ask me about my life without you?”  
  
“Uhm…” Harry hurries after him, hands in his coat pockets as he joins Niall trailing over the campus. “Is it as boring and sad as I think it is?”  
  
It gets the reaction out of Niall Harry wanted to see – hear actually, because Niall laughs out loud.   
  
“Very dull and dead without your lame jokes, to be honest. I can’t believe I’ve survived without them during those last few years. And you? Have you missed me? Or have I immediately been replaced after I left?”  
  
Harry smirks to himself, bumping into Niall lightly. “‘Course I missed you. Tried replacing you with Gemma but it didn’t work out.”  
  
“‘Course it didn’t.” Niall agrees with a satisfied grin.  
  
“And I guess, you didn’t have any problems with finding new friends, huh? Like, I bet it was easy for you to replace _me_ .” Harry says, trying to play it off like a joke but he’s not sure if he manages.  
  
“How could I ever replace you, Harry? We were best mates for like what? Ten years. Of course I found some friends but  _you_ , you were always my best mate. I guess, you still are, to be honest.” Niall shrugs, flashing Harry a small smile before he looks away.  
  
Harry gulps, trying to hold back a shudder from the cold. “I just figured…you know, it wouldn’t be that hard to find a better mate than me? Like we lost contact soon after you moved and I just thought you’d easily forget about me.”  
  
Harry hasn’t meant to make the conversation so serious already, but he can’t help himself.  
  
Niall stops walking, taking Harry off guard and letting him stop in his tracks. “We lost contact because we both grew up. Living far away from each other, Harry. Of course I didn’t forget about you.  _What the hell?_ ”  
  
The grin or smile or whatever is gone from Niall’s expression and he seems mostly confused with his furrowed brow.  
  
“I - …I wouldn’t have blamed you, you know? I would have understood considering what I did…”  
  
“Wait.” Niall cuts him off, trying to catch Harry’s gaze. “Is this about what I think it is? Like, did you seriously think I was or still am angry at you for that?”  
  
Harry feels a bit attacked, not knowing what to reply. He didn’t exactly think Niall hated him, or that Niall was angry with him before he moved away with his family, but he has considered it. It wouldn’t have surprised him either.  
  
“I… Uhm, I don’t know…”  
  
“God, Harry, I was  _never_ mad at you, okay? Not a second.” Niall tells him, shaking his head in disbelief.  
  
“I’m still sorry.” Harry mumbles.  
  
He’s not meeting Niall’s gaze, trying to avoid it mostly by looking around so he only hears Niall sigh at him.  
  
“It was a kiss, not the end of the world.”  
  
Harry feels his face flush, his entire body heating up and suddenly the cold wind isn’t bothering him anymore because he’s breaking a sweat. Of course he knew what they were talking about. He was the one who started the conversation after all, but it’s still different when Niall says it out loud.  
  
It was a stupid thing to do – to kiss Niall, his best mate – but he was  _young_  (sixteen), and he was  _dumb_  for doing it just like that. But Niall was his best mate for so many years, and suddenly the boy had to move away with his family, and without thinking Harry simply did it one day. He had felt different about Niall for a while then already, and although he didn’t plan it, he kissed Niall – regretting it the second Niall pushed him away.  
  
“Of course, I was shocked about it,  _hell_ , it was unexpected after all. But I was never mad at you and I believe that’s what I told you. You would have to fuck up really badly to make me angry with you.” Niall’s laugh is back and Harry relaxes a bit.  
  
“I’m sorry, I just thought…”  
  
“You think way too much, Harry.” Niall stops him.  
  
“Sorry.”  
  
“And stop apologizing.” He laughs again, making Harry smile again.  
  
Harry knew he shouldn’t have ever worried about Niall hating him or whatever but just like Niall said, Harry thinks too much. He’s thankful that Niall still hasn’t changed personality wise, because he can still make Harry feel better about himself after all those years; he can still make him feel relaxed.

After Niall had moved away, Harry has started thinking about that, about the kiss and why he had done it. And, he had told himself it was because he had been in the process of figuring his sexuality out and Niall had been there (of course), because Niall was his best friend.  
  
But with Niall standing in front of him now, the wind making a mess out of his dyed blond hair and his nose red from the cold, with the small smile he’s giving Harry like they haven’t just seen each other for the first time after five years, Harry can’t deny that  _Niall in particular_  has been the cause of his crisis after all.  
  
Because it was Niall’s laugh that made him question his sexuality. It’s been his smile (even with his crooked teeth), and his nice blue eyes that Harry often found himself get lost in, that have made Harry question everything because it was  _particularly Niall_  who Harry wanted to be even closer with. It was Niall who Harry wanted to properly be with and kiss whenever he wanted to, and even after five years of not seeing each other,  _Harry still feels the same about him._

_It’s always been him._

"I noticed you’re not wearing a watch." Harry suddenly says, remembering what has made him talk to Niall in the first place.  
  
“Well observed.”   
  
Harry sees the smirk on Niall’s face and furrows his brow in confusion. “Why?”  
  
Niall sighs as if he has had the same conversation multiple times before. “I don’t know; I’m not a fan of the whole thing.” He says, irritating Harry.  
  
Because Harry remembers how they had both been excited about turning eighteen and getting their watches, and how Niall always made fun of Harry because he was a few months older than him. Harry also remembers how he has  _secretly_  always hoped their watches would match.  
  
But then Niall has moved away and he quickly lost hope.  
  
“I don’t understand. Why the change of mind?”  
  
Niall shrugs. “You know, I got one but never put it on, because I started thinking how I don’t want to be fixed on that one date, on that one person I’m gonna meet then. I figured if I was meant to be with somebody, I would meet them eventually, with or without it. I wanted to experience stuff without having to worry about making a mistake or cheating on somebody I’m gonna meet in a year.”  
  
Harry stares at him, getting what Niall is saying but then again, he doesn’t fully understand it. “But it worked for your parents and also for my parents and multiple other people and they are all happy, right?”  
  
“Yeah, of course, they’re happy with each other. But I don’t think the watches are natural. I mean, I don’t think that’s how it’s supposed to happen. Falling in love. I don’t know.”   
  
Harry shakes his head, not agreeing with what Niall is trying to explain to him.  
  
“The watch doesn’t make you  _fall in love_. It only tells you who would be your perfect match and then the falling in love comes naturally.” Harry argues.  
  
Niall laughs a bit but he doesn’t seem convinced. “But when you know who you’re supposed to be with, don’t you automatically fall in love with them? Because it’s imprinted in your mind that you’re meant to be?”  
  
They stare at each other for a moment, Niall probably thinking that he has won already until Harry speaks up again.  
  
“A mate of mine has been with his soulmate years before they got together and in the end, their watches just confirmed it. And they did fall in love without something telling them it was meant to be. They knew it themselves that they are soulmates.”  
  
 _And I’ve fallen in love with you before I figured there’s a possibility that you’re my soulmate.  
_  
But Harry doesn’t add that. Not out loud, at least.  
  
There’s still a possibility that his watch is broken after all, and it’s messing with him, making him consider he could have Niall that way without it actually being the truth.  
  
“Tell me, Harry. You have a watch, right? Or has it counted down already?” Harry shakes his head, lying in a way because his watch has counted down. It just somehow hasn’t found an end yet. “How much time do you still have?” Niall asks.  
  
“A while.” Harry mumbles. Because he figures it will take some time still.  
  
“Have you ever had anything close to a relationship? Even though you knew they were not meant for you?”  
  
“Hey, I’m not a prude.” Harry feels like he has to defend himself, because it seems like Niall is implying Harry has sat around doing nothing during those years since he turned eighteen. “But not a serious relationship, no.”  
  
“See! That’s what I’m talking about.”  
  
“But that’s because it just never worked out. It never felt right for me.” Harry says. “Tell me, Niall. Have you ever been in a relationship? A serious one?”  
  
“No.” Niall laughs, looking onto the cold ground and not meeting Harry’s gaze.   
  
“And why is that?” Harry smirks, triumphantly.  
  
“It just never felt right, I guess.”  
  
“See, and that’s not because you know when exactly you’re gonna meet the right one.”  
  
Niall laughs quietly but Harry still hears it and he looks up again, giving his still best mate a smile. “I guess you’re right.”  
  
Harry grins at him, feeling a bit too pleased about the fact that he somehow convinced Niall, at least a little bit, and Niall is already admitting defeat. Harry knows it’s probably only because Niall’s not in the mood to carry the argument on but Harry’s still happy.  
  
“Who knows, maybe I’m gonna put it on someday?” Niall laughs and Harry hopes he’s serious and it’s not some kind of joke. “I still have it somewhere.”  
  
Harry smiles, staring at Niall who’s kind of staring back at him, wishing that someone would just already tell him if his theory is right and not make everything so complicated. He wishes he could simply kiss Niall right now, because the same feeling he had five years ago whenever he stared at Niall _is still there._  
  
“I think I should head back.” Niall suddenly says after a moment of silence and Harry only nods at him with a smile. “You coming?”  
  
“Nah.” Harry shakes his head slightly. “I’m just gonna go to my room. It’s late after all.”  
  
Niall agrees with a nod, before he lets out a small breath of laughter. “I just remembered it’s Valentine’s Day.”  
  
Harry joins in laughing quietly and then Niall is already distancing himself from him, taking a few steps back while waving goodbye. “Bye, Harry. It was nice seeing you.”  
  
Harry gives him a grin, waving back. “Good night, Niall.”   
  
He watches him walk away for a while, content and probably with a dumb smile on his face, as he suddenly remembers something, eyes widening a bit. “Niall!”  
  
The boy immediately turns around, standing a bit far away now and shouting back a “What is it?”  
  
Harry laughs quietly to himself, taking a deep breath before he shouts.  
  
“You should put on your watch, you know?”  
  
Even in the dark with the only light coming from the moon and the lamps on the campus, Harry can see Niall cocking his head to the side, probably wondering what is going through Harry’s mind now. “Why?”  
  
Harry is still not exactly sure if he’s right – if he can be sure about the thing with Niall – but he’s hit by a warm and content feeling when he thinks about it. “Just do it.”  
  
Niall nods with laughter, waving again before he turns around to finally go. “Happy Valentine’s Day, Harry! See you!”  
  
And Harry has a feeling that’s going to happen rather sooner than later.

“Happy Valentine’s Day, Niall.”

  
*

  
Once Harry is in his room he puts off his jacket, immediately noticing the light of the screen of his watch. He has already figured it would happen, seeing as he felt his watch vibrate on his way back. But instead of looking at the countdown and figuring out when he’s gonna meet his soulmate, he ignores it, trying to find some kind of tape in the room to cover the screen up.  
  
He doesn’t want to know the exact date because he’s pretty sure about who it’s gonna be, so he figures he’ll meet them eventually anyway. And he rather wants it to be a surprise about when exactly it’s gonna be.  
  
Valentine’s Day didn’t go at all like Harry expected but still. He’s  _extremely_ content with it the moment he falls asleep.

  
  
*

  
  
It’s four days later that Harry is on his way to the library, wanting to meet up with Zayn there to study together for a while. He’s walking through the corridors, distancing himself more and more from his room. He’s not exactly in a hurry, seeing as Zayn will be late anyway and it doesn’t matter that much after all, but then again, the way he’s walking isn’t slow either. Harry is more focused on his destination than the way to it, making quick steps over the floor, so it’s not really surprising that he bumps into somebody when he turns a corner.  
  
Harry fully crashes into them, their head hitting Harry’s nose and he rubs it, eyes opening after they’ve been shut close during the crash. He hasn’t properly managed to acknowledge the person in front of him (sight still a bit blurry) when he feels a prominent vibration around his wrist.  
  
And it’s kind of funny how Harry couldn’t care less about his hurting nose and slight pain in his head from the crash, once he figures out what has just happened because he’s been right after all. The feeling  _wasn’t_ just hope building inside him since last weekend, as he stupidly smiles at the person in front of him who has still been rubbing his head before his eyes flash to the familiar watch on his wrist.  
  
Harry guesses Niall must have felt the same vibration coming from the watch, and once his gaze meets Harry’s, he’s probably figured out what it all means. Niall hasn’t got a matching dumb grin on his face yet though, and Harry would’ve felt offended, if he hadn’t realized that Niall must probably still be in shock. Or at least something like surprise.  
  
Niall meets his gaze then and Harry is not sure what his expression means. He used to be so good at reading Niall’s feelings by taking a look at his behavior, but it’s like he’s out of practice now. Niall still seems surprised, but if Harry thinks about it again, he could also come off as disappointed?   
  
He strongly hopes it’s the first.  
  
“Harry?”  
  
Harry’s smile falters a bit, seeing as he has no idea what’s going through Niall’s mind. Is he confused? Should Harry try to explain it to him? Does Niall maybe not accept the fact that Harry apparently is his soulmate?  
  
“Niall.” Harry replies and he tries to keep the confident smile on his face. “I…I uhm see you’ve listened to my advice.” Harry mentions, making a gesture at Niall’s wrist with his head.  
  
Niall lets out a breath of laughter, looking at his wrist and seeming a bit embarrassed. “Yeah, uhm I just thought why not, you know? After you told me to do it.”  
  
Harry raises his eyebrows at him. “You used to not listen to me most of the time. Was I that convincing?”  
  
There’s a laugh from Niall and then he’s looking at Harry again. “No, not exactly.” He laughs again after he says that, probably because of the offended face Harry is giving him now.  
  
“Listen, Harry…” Niall shakes his head with a slight chuckle, obviously taking a deep breath and looking at Harry with a bit of a flushed face. “After I left…I started thinking about what you said. You know, the thing about the watch only telling you who would fit to you, and the story about your mate and how he was so sure about his soulmate and the watch only confirming it.”  
  
Harry nods, smile mostly gone now and simply listening to what Niall has to say.  
  
“And I, uhm…” Niall lets out an embarrassed laugh. “I wanted to see if the watch would confirm what I already thought.”  
  
There’s a silence for a few seconds because Harry is only staring at him with a furrowed brow, trying to process the words he just heard until realization hits him and his face lights up with a grin. “And? Did it?”  
  
Niall nods, small smile on his lips. “I still can’t believe it’s actually  _you_.”  
  
Harry slightly cocks his head to the sight, being reminded about some of Niall’s first words to him on Valentine’s Day but not really getting the ‘actually’ thing so he hopes his confused expression is question enough for Niall.  
  
“I mean, I considered it but I didn’t think you actually were my soulmate, so I’m still like _…wow_.” Niall rambles and his face flushes even more.  
  
Harry is still not sure if that’s a good thing for Niall – them being soulmates – because it’s not like Niall has ever shown any interest in him like that. But he’s fully grinning again once he hears Niall’s next words.  
  
“I pretty much always hoped it.”  
  
“You… _Really_?”   
  
Niall nods and Harry almost jumps into his arms right then. But he can hold himself back. For now.

“Yeah, I mean….” Niall’s face has gone a slight shade of red and Harry almost interrupts him to say that he has no reason to be embarrassed. “I know we’ve always only ever been mates but it has always felt right to be with you and since some point I just…always hoped we could be something more.”  
  
“Since when?” Harry wants to know, more than surprised because he has never considered Niall feeling the same about him.  
  
Niall shrugs. “I’m not sure, like a few months before I moved away.”  
  
Harry’s grin goes even wider, not knowing it was possible, and he’s partly amused but also endeared by Niall’s embarrassment. “But you still pushed me away when I kissed you! And that took me an awful lot of courage. You even made me regret it!” He exclaims.  
  
Niall shakes his head with a laugh, before scratching the back of his neck. “C’mon Haz, I was sixteen and confused about liking my best mate for a while and all of a sudden said best mate kissed me out of nowhere. How would you have reacted?”  
  
Harry only gives him a cheeky smile. “I would have kissed you back.”  
  
“Yeah?”   
  
“Of course.” Harry confirms confidently because well. He would’ve, definitely. He was so gone for Niall in the past already that he would have happily accepted a kiss.  
  
Niall smirks at him, stepping towards him until their faces are extremely close. “Uh, that’s good. Yeah.” He mumbles and then he’s pressing his lips against Harry’s.  
  
It takes Harry off guard and he needs a moment to react and kiss back, letting himself fall into the kiss and holding onto whatever shirt Niall’s wearing. He can feel Niall’s hands on his waist, a tight grip which holds him steady and he’s thankful for it, seeing as he would probably fall without anybody holding him.  
  
It beats any other kiss Harry has ever shared, even his first one with Niall, considering he hadn’t really reacted to that one like he has with this one.

“My roommate is with his girlfriend…” Harry mumbles against Niall’s lips. “…so my room’s free.”  
  
“Okay.” Niall agrees, but he’s not fully stopping the kiss, not letting go of Harry yet.  
  
Harry feels his phone vibrate in the pocket of his tight jeans, and apparently Niall feels it too because he’s pecking Harry’s lips one last time before he loosens his grip on Harry and takes a step back.  
  
“Sorry.” Harry mumbles and he sees in Niall’s expression that he truly apologizes too often. He gets his phone out of the pocket, unlocking it and reading a text message that he just got from Zayn. Harry laughs as he reads it, putting is phone away and looking at Niall to see him raising his eyebrows in question.

“I was on my way to the library to meet a mate but he just told me that he couldn’t make it.”  
  
Niall laughs back, showing off his straight teeth and Harry reminds himself to ask Niall about when exactly he got braces.

_Later_  
  
Because Niall has already grabbed his hand, softly pulling him into the direction Harry just came from.  
  
“I think it’s time for you to show me your room.”


End file.
